Climate change, the study in Nature: “58% of infectious diseases considered aggravated by the environmental situation”

From higher average temperatures to repeated drought conditions, climate change could play a pivotal role in worsening of conditions and risks associated with infectious diseases. This alarming result emerges from a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change, conducted by scientists from the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, who considered the link between pollution, climate change and health risks due to infectious diseases. The research team, led by Camilo Mora, examined previous work to answer the questions raised.

In total, 3,213 empirical cases linked to 286 diseases at 10 climate risks were considered, which included, but were not limited to, high temperatures, flood events or drought. 277 of the episodes reported by the authors were attributable to at least one climatic risk. The researchers tried to reconstruct the complete picture of the probabilities of health complications. In previous attempts to establish climate-related risks of infectious diseases, in fact, scholars have focused mainly on specific groups of pathogens, for example bacteria o virus, and on responding to certain hazards, such as heat waves or increased floods. However, the research team points out that this approach is not sufficient to consider all potential threats to global health.

According to what emerges from the authors’ work, 58 percent of the infectious diseases considered were aggravated by the environmental situation. For example, the authors report, the likelihood of human exposure to pathogens is now higher than a few decades ago, which increases the risk of spillover due to the increased opportunities for contact with wildlife. At the same time, the effects of climate change are related to a higher disease occurrence rate Lyme, dengue e malariawhile the increasing frequency of storms and floods could result in more cases of Lassa fever o legionellosis. This work, the experts conclude, shows that climate risks can be related to different diseases, highlights the limited adaptability of contemporary society and highlights the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to promote greater global health.

Valentina Di Paola